Update on my hi-miler Z project

[carter200]

You did good

[VetteMed]

Thanks for all the feedback, guys. I'm actually surprised the car turned out as nice as it did, given how cosmetically neglected it was upon arrival.

It was cloudy when the pics were taken... there's lots of chips on the rockers, they look like they were peppered with buckshot. The front bumper cover is all spidered. There's some panel color variation here and there, the driver's door skin was replaced sometime in the 90s, and the rear bumper cover as well, I think in the late 90s (I have the documentation, but can't remember offhand).

But, yes, I want to just drive it and enjoy it for a while. Besides, I live on a dirt road now, and there's no way I'd drive it if it was freshly painted. In its current condition, It's easy to laugh off a new chip here and there.

[VetteMed]

Update: First Drive! Took the car to the exhaust shop today, and it ran perfectly! Idled well, great power, chassis feels good (needs alignment, but everything is tight). Love those Corsas, nice and quiet at cruise but wicked on acceleration.

I did get a Service Ride Control light, with lots of codes thrown, guess I have some work ahead of me in that regard. The actuators work, and the shocks are all good, so I guess I've got some electrical troubleshooting to do.

Also, the rear differential is still leaking from the pinion seal, even though I put a new seal in. I've ordered a sleeve kit and another seal to see if perhaps there's some wear of the pinion shaft causing the leak.

[ScottZ95ZR1]

Originally Posted by VetteMed

Update: First Drive! Took the car to the exhaust shop today, and it ran perfectly! Idled well, great power, chassis feels good (needs alignment, but everything is tight). Love those Corsas, nice and quiet at cruise but wicked on acceleration.

I did get a Service Ride Control light, with lots of codes thrown, guess I have some work ahead of me in that regard. The actuators work, and the shocks are all good, so I guess I've got some electrical troubleshooting to do.

Also, the rear differential is still leaking from the pinion seal, even though I put a new seal in. I've ordered a sleeve kit and another seal to see if perhaps there's some wear of the pinion shaft causing the leak.

Glad you got a chance to put a grin on after all the hard work you've done on her Andrew !

[tomtom72]

sweet deal Andrew! I'm happy for you that the car is getting to the finish line!


When I r&r'ed my old shocks for the new ones I got the same reaction from the ride control light. It took a number of times clearing the codes in my case to get the system to calm down. I do not know why. I knew that I had the mechanical steps done correctly and the electrical connections were good. Yet for the first 20 miles or so I got every DTC in the chart!
I just kept reading them & clearing them and it stopped happening eventually. I still do not know why or if it's just that I disturbed the system. It was just strange & drove me nuts for a day or two.

On the pinion leak. Did you notice on the pinion shaft where the seal rides any pitting or rust or even a 'groove' from wear? Sometimes a crocus cloth and some WD40 can clean it up enough so the new seal has a chance to seat. If the pinion shaft is in good condition, the vent could be causing an issue if it is clogged....but unless the old fluid was like tar I doubt that vent would be at fault.


Tom

[VetteMed]

Originally Posted by tomtom72

sweet deal Andrew! I'm happy for you that the car is getting to the finish line!


When I r&r'ed my old shocks for the new ones I got the same reaction from the ride control light. It took a number of times clearing the codes in my case to get the system to calm down. I do not know why. I knew that I had the mechanical steps done correctly and the electrical connections were good. Yet for the first 20 miles or so I got every DTC in the chart!
I just kept reading them & clearing them and it stopped happening eventually. I still do not know why or if it's just that I disturbed the system. It was just strange & drove me nuts for a day or two.

On the pinion leak. Did you notice on the pinion shaft where the seal rides any pitting or rust or even a 'groove' from wear? Sometimes a crocus cloth and some WD40 can clean it up enough so the new seal has a chance to seat. If the pinion shaft is in good condition, the vent could be causing an issue if it is clogged....but unless the old fluid was like tar I doubt that vent would be at fault.


Tom

Tom, thanks for the info regarding the FX3 codes, I'm hoping that's what's going on in this case, since the system worked fine before I took it all apart.

When I had the diff apart a few months ago to replace the seal, I really didn't see any pitting or grooving or rust on the surface of the pinion shaft. However, it's possible I missed a spot, I suppose. I cleaned out the vent at that time, and it appeared to be functioning normally.

Thanks
Andrew

[tomtom72]

I'm sure there is nothing on the pinion shaft! I should have figured you did a tear down on the rear gear, Andrew! My bad.

I'll bet the seal may have been bad out of the box? It seems it is hard to get good quality in parts today. You cleaned out the seal bore, right? I'm just trying to be your check list.

Yea, on the FX3. I don't know why all the DTC's. It drove me nuts. Just bear with it because I know you know it went back together right!

[VetteMed]

A bad seal out of the box would be a nice explanation! I don't think I cleaned the seal bore all that well, so it's possible there's seepage from around the seal rather than through it. Good point, Tom. I'll get it taken apart again and report back

[ittlfly]

Andrew, The car looks great now. It's not the same car I saw when it was in Redding a few years back. It was a real disaster.

[tomtom72]

Originally Posted by VetteMed

A bad seal out of the box would be a nice explanation! I don't think I cleaned the seal bore all that well, so it's possible there's seepage from around the seal rather than through it. Good point, Tom. I'll get it taken apart again and report back

Is it leaking that bad? I was thinking that maybe it could take a while to become friends with the pinion shaft. I know that my car sat so much by the O.O. that I developed seeps at the stub axle seals because I drove her......but after awhile they stopped..... I know I should have pulled it out & torn it down right away....someday I will.